


Secrets between us

by SSA_A



Series: The Family That I Chose [2]
Category: Criminal Minds (US TV)
Genre: Bisexual Aaron Hotchner, Hiding, Jack Hotchner is smart, M/M, Non-Binary Spencer Reid, Not Beta Read, Pansexual Spencer Reid, Secret Relationship, like really smart for a kid, slightly explicit
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-22
Updated: 2021-02-22
Packaged: 2021-03-12 22:27:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,329
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29641614
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SSA_A/pseuds/SSA_A
Summary: Spencer and Aaron haven't told Jack about them yet but the boy always seems to be around them.In other words, a 5+1 of the times Jack almost caught his dad and Spencer and the one time he knew.
Relationships: Aaron Hotchner & Jack Hotchner, Aaron Hotchner & Jack Hotchner & Spencer Reid, Jack Hotchner & Spencer Reid, Spencer Reid/Aaron Hotchner
Series: The Family That I Chose [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2161950
Comments: 1
Kudos: 64





	Secrets between us

**Author's Note:**

> So I see Jack as at least 7, and I know that doesn’t add up with the storyline but I also see that Hayley and Aaron divorced around the end of season one, but Foyet still killed her because he knew a part of Aaron would always love her. 
> 
> (Slight bit of implied sex at the start but doesn't go in detail so can be skipped if you want)

Spencer should have known better than to sit on Aaron’s lap in his house, they had no excuse except that Aaron had been giving them  _ that _ look all day and all they wanted to do was go to their knees for him. They had their hand under Aaron’s shirt, rubbing his chest as Aaron had his hands on Spencer’s waist and it felt so good. 

They bit Aaron’s lip gently, trying to get a rise from him, and they were rewarded with a growl before they were being lifted up as Aaron stood and the two of them were moving towards the wall without even breaking for a breath and Spencer loved it. 

Aaron was controlling, he liked being in charge but they hadn’t tried to bring that into their sex yet which why the change of pace was making Spencer dizzy in the head. They wanted Aaron to ruin them right there and then, they would let Aaron ruin them anywhere if he asked. 

Aaron was grabbing their legs and wrapping them around his waist and Spencer got the message before they felt one of Aaron’s hands on their chest and moving up to their neck before it was in their hair, pulling them closer to him. 

Spencer pulled away for a breath and they looked into Aaron’s eyes, they were blown wide and Spencer moaned before moving back to kiss him, they  _ wanted  _ Aaron, they  _ needed _ Aaron. Aaron bit their lip, hard enough for Spencer to gasp and that just made them harder. They were so hard and they knew that Aaron was as well, they could feel him through his jeans. 

Spencer ground down into him and Aaron moaned into their mouth, they were about to move out of the hold before Aaron was letting them go and moving towards the couch. Spencer was about to question it before they heard the pitter patter of Jack’s feet coming down the hall to them. They moved to the couch as well, pulling the cover they had used earlier over themself and pretending to have been asleep before the door was pushed open and Jack stood there with his Captain America toy. 

“Hey Buddy, what’s wrong?” If Spencer had heard Aaron say that without knowledge of what they had just done, they would never have guessed that Aaron was hard and just stopped kissing someone. It was like he flipped a switch from Horny Aaron to Dad Aaron and Spencer had no idea how he did that. 

“There’s a monster under my bed. Can you scare it away?” Aaron stood from his seat and Spencer looked him up and down, he had moved his jeans in such a way that his erection wasn’t visible at all.

“Of course Buddy. Let’s go scare the monster away.” Spencer smiled as they watched the two walk back to Jack’s room, they didn’t even care about being interrupted because they loved seeing Aaron acting like that to Jack, it made him even softer in their eyes. 

“Night Jack.” Spencer waved at the boy who waved back and they closed their eyes, waiting for Aaron to come back and to finish what they had started, preferably in the room with a locked door. 

—

Aaron was cooking breakfast when Spencer woke up, they could smell it. They weren’t used to the idea of someone making breakfast for them, they had lived on their own since they were 18 and it was a weird thing to get used to. 

Spencer went for a quick shower, drying and brushing their teeth before heading down the stairs to see Aaron dancing around in the kitchen. They watched for a minute or so, committing the actions to memory, before they walked over and grabbed his hips and kissed Aaron’s cheek. 

“Morning Darling. How was your sleep?” Spencer hummed, hopping onto a clean section of the counter beside Aaron. 

“It was good. You keep me warm.” Aaron smiled at that and Spencer loved seeing his face light up like that. “What are you making?” 

“Pancakes. Chocolate chip for you and Jack with your sweet tooth and plain for me.” Spencer grinned, they had it so good with Aaron. 

“Do you need to do anything right now?” Aaron shook his head and Spencer grabbed his arm and pulled him close. “Good.” 

Aaron moved them slightly, opening their legs so he could slit himself in between them, then he was grabbing their hair and pulling them down for a kiss. 

Spencer melted into him, their hands going to his hips as Aaron took over, pulling their hair and biting their lip just enough that they were becoming a mess in his hands. 

They stayed like that for a few minutes before the tell tale signs of Jack opening his bedroom door drew them away and only seconds later did he walk into the kitchen, not even blinking at Spencer getting their shirt fixed or the way their hair looked a mess. 

“Morning Jack.” Spencer jumped off the counter and sat beside the young boy. “Did you like the movie last night?” 

“Yeah! It was so cool! Thank you for watching it.” Spencer chuckled slightly, the young Hotchner was just as polite as Aaron was and it was adorable. 

“Pancakes for my favorite and then I guess Spencer can have some.” Jack laughed at his dad before he was tucking into his food and Spencer was as well. 

They were about to ask what they had for today before Aaron’s phone went off and they both sighed. He answered it. 

“JJ?” He paused as she talked and Spencer looked down at Jack who seemed to realize he was going to be staying with Aunt Jessica for a little bit. “Okay. Call everyone and we will meet on the plane, tell Reid that I can pick them up on the way in.” 

He switched the phone off and turned to the table with a frown. “Jack I need to go away for a few days, can you go and grab your bag for Aunt Jessica’s?” 

Jack just nodded, heading to his room and Spencer sighed. It was going to be a bad one. Their phone rang and they picked it up to hear JJ. 

“Child abduction, we are four hours in. Hotch will pick you up from yours.” Spencer shivered, they hated cases with kids. 

“Got it.” They shut their phone off and looked at Aaron. “I’ll grab the bags if you phone Jessica.” 

“Thanks Darling.” The two of them started to move and Spencer waved goodbye to continuing that kiss for a while. 

—

Spencer was on their phone, not even doing anything really, just swiping through their pictures. They had finished all their books and even Aaron’s books, they had cleaned up and they had eaten, but Aaron was still picking Jack up from Jessica’s and they were bored. They didn’t normally get bored, their mind always running a million miles a minute but it seemed to calm when they were in the Hotchner house. They were about to switch their phone off, and hunt for a book to reread, but Aaron’s face popped up and they smiled at him before answering the call. 

“Hiya.” They smiled, knowing Aaron could hear it through their voice. 

“Hey. Can you get the medicine out for Jack? He has a small fever and I don’t want him getting sick.” Spencer was already out of their seat as they heard the word ‘medicine’. “Could you also maybe make soup? We should have some in already.”

“Of course. How is he feeling?” Aaron was quiet for a second and Spencer held their breath, it wasn’t like Jack was their own, but  _ God  _ they loved him. 

“He is asleep right now, apparently it only got bad an hour or so ago but he had a small stomach ache last night.” Spencer knew he was frowning and was blaming himself for not knowing.

“You didn’t know Aaron, you cannot blame yourself.” He was silent again but Spencer knew he was still blaming himself and would for a while. “ETA?”

“Less than ten minutes.” Spencer hummed and started on the soup, making it how Jack liked it. “Thank you.” They heard through the phone and they smiled. 

“You don’t need to thank me for helping.” It was true but it also felt a confession and Aaron knew that as well. 

“Still, thank you.” The call went dead and Spencer held it to their ear for a few more seconds, that wasn’t a ‘thank you for making soup’ that was a ‘thank you for staying, thank you for helping, thank you for being you’ and Spencer didn’t know how to cope with that. 

They were lost in thought so much that they didn’t even hear Aaron opening the door and placing Jack in his room before coming into the kitchen. They did feel when he wrapped his arms around them and kissed their neck gently. 

“How is the little Hotchner?” Spencer decided to ignore the small confessions on the phone as they finished stirring the soup and pouring it into the bowl. 

“Still sleeping but he needs to eat something before he can take the medication. Can you take it to him while I grab a few things?” Spencer nodded, grabbing a soft kiss before they were opening Jack’s door and setting the bowl on his unit. 

“Hiya Buddy, can you wake up for me?” Spencer shook him slightly, frowning at the heat coming off his body. “I made you some food.” They shook him again and Jack opened an eye before grumbling something. “Hiya. Can you do me a big favor?” 

“Hm?” Jack pushed himself up a little, letting Spencer help him up. 

“I made some soup to make you feel better, can you try and eat a little bit?” Jack blinked a few times, trying to wake himself up but nodded and Spencer smiled. “Good job kiddo.”    


They handed the spoon to him, they decided to hold the bowl since they didn’t want it spilling on him, and he ate a few spoonfuls before pushing it away from him. 

“How about a little more?” Spencer tried to hand it back but he just shook his head and Spencer could have sworn they saw tears in his eyes. “How about I go and get Daddy? We can all have some soup.” 

Jack didn’t say anything so Spencer placed the bowl back on the unit and went to grab Aaron from whatever he was doing. They found him in the living area, bags in his hands as he looked through them for something. “Jack is asking for you, he seems a bit sad.” 

“Has he eaten?” Spencer shook their head. 

“Not enough, maybe a few spoonfuls.” Aaron sighed, running a hand through his hair before he started to walk and Spencer followed behind. 

The two of them stopped at Jack’s door, watching the small boy as he shook from crying and Aaron was beside him in seconds. “Hey Buddy, can you look at me?” Jack lifted his head and Spencer’s heart broke at his face, the tear marks clear. “I know it hurts but you need to eat so you can take some medicine and go to sleep.” 

“Don’t want to, Daddy.” Spencer walked over to them both, sitting on the end of the bed and resting a hand on Jack’s foot. 

“I know Buddy but you need to. What if I ate some as well?” Jack shrugged and Aaron decided to just go with it, taking the bowl and eating a little bit before giving Jack the spoon. “There you go. Good boy.” 

After a few spoonfuls again Jack was pushing it away and Aaron just nodded before taking the medicine off the unit and showing Jack it. “This is going to make you feel better, can you take it?” 

“Make me better?” Spencer and Aaron nodded at that so Jack just nodded and opened his mouth so Aaron could give him the medication. 

“Good boy. Now you go to sleep now.” Jack grabbed Aaron’s arms before he could move and Aaron just shushed him gently. “I won’t leave Buddy.” 

“Spencer?” Spencer stood, moving closer as well. “Don’t leave.”

“I would never Kiddo. Now you get some sleep.” Jack nodded, closing his eyes and a few minutes later he was sleeping. “God, I feel so bad for leaving him.”

“You did nothing wrong, he wasn’t going to eat without us both here and you know that.” Aaron turned to face them and Spencer just buried their face into his neck. “Thank you for everything.” 

“Always.” Spencer was quiet for a few seconds before he turned Aaron’s head to give him a kiss and as they were pulling away Jack opened his eyes. 

“Nee’ Cap’ian Ame’ra.” He didn’t say anything about Spencer and Aaron so the two of them didn’t either and Spencer moved to pick up the toy form where it had fallen, and when Jack had it in his arms he fell back asleep. 

“He won’t remember in the morning. Don’t worry.” Aaron was holding their waist and they let out a small sigh, they were not ready to tell Jack yet and either was Aaron. 

\--

Aaron was meant to be getting something from the closest, but he was taking a long time and Spencer was a little concerned for their partner. They glanced over at Jack, the boy was playing with his toys, so Spencer stood and headed into the hall, making sure to make noise so Aaron knew they were coming down the hall. 

“Aaron? Are you okay?” Spencer stopped just beside the opened door, looking in to see Aaron holding a box in his hands and looking through it. “Aaron?” 

“Hmm?” Aaron looked up at him, almost like he hadn’t heard Spencer walking to him. “Come sit down, I want to show you something.” Spencer nodded, moving closer so they could sit beside Aaron. 

“What’s this?” Aaron handed them a book from the box and they opened it carefully, mouth falling open as they realized what it was. Aaron’s Senior Yearbook. “Are you in here?”

“Yeah. Here, I’ll show you.” Spencer let Aaron look through the book and they watched as he opened it onto the page with his name on the top. 

“You looked like a nerd.” Spencer ran their hand over the picture and grinned, he looked nothing like the Aaron Hotchner they knew. 

“I did, didn’t I? I got bullied in school but I still worked hard to get out.” Spencer looked up at that, they knew Aaron didn’t have a happy childhood but he never openly talked about it. “I always wanted to help people, I volunteered when I could, and when my father didn’t let me I helped my mother and Sean.” 

Spencer moved closer to him and Aaron let them. “You do help people.” 

“I know. Sometimes I wonder if I could be doing more though,” He shook his head and Spencer watched as the mask of Aaron Hotchner was placed back onto this face and he turned to Spencer with a smirk. “I’ll show you my play I was in.” Spencer nodded, not wanting to make it seem like they wanted to push Aaron for more, they weren’t ready for that in their relationship, but they would get Aaron to open up soon, hopefully. 

As they looked through the book together Spencer moved closer to Aaron until he pulled them onto his lap and Spencer relaxed into his hold. The two then looked through the playbook, then Aaron’s college photos and when they flipped to the next one they heard the door open and the two of them jumped away from each other. 

“Daddy, I want to watch a movie.” Spencer didn’t look at Jack, not really wanting to see if the boy had seen how close they were. “Can we have ice cream?”

“Sure Buddy, how about you pick a movie so Spencer and I can clean up?” Jack nodded and left them alone and Spencer could still feel their heart racing at how close they were to being caught. 

“Do you think he saw?” Spencer ran a hand through their hair before they were being pulled into Aaron’s lap and kissed. 

“He won’t care, but no I don’t think he saw.” Spencer relaxed into Aaron’s hold, letting the man squeeze their hips just enough to make them moan a little bit into his mouth. “If we don’t stop I don’t think I’ll want to.” 

“I can’t choose for you. Although you have a son who may be coming back in a few minutes.” Aaron sighed but let go of Spencer with a groan. “Now come on, I’ll make hot cocoa for us if you get Jack to pick a movie.” 

“This is why I like you.” Aaron was about to kiss them again but Jack was running down the hall and shouting for his Daddy. “Well duty calls I guess.” Aaron pushed himself up and Spencer followed before Jack was in Aaron’s arm and the two of them were listening to Jack’s ramble about the movies he couldn’t decide on. 

\--

David was a good friend to Aaron, he knew that, which was why he offered to take Jack fishing when the boy expressed an interest on a calm weekend. He liked Jack and he likes spending time with the kid, and he knew that feeling was reciprocated because Jack called him Uncle David for God's sake. 

So as the two of them drove towards the lake that David liked, one close to his house, he listened to Jack babble on about something that Spencer had taught him. The kid obviously loved Spencer, the way he talked about them made that obvious, but he also talked about him in a way that David was sure he knew something he wasn’t meant to. 

“So you like Spencer?” Jack nodded and looked to his hands, the same nervous tick that Spencer had. “What else does Spencer do that you like?”

“They make Daddy happy. I like when Daddy is happy, he smiles more.” David smiled at that himself, Aaron deserved to be happy after the life he had been dealt and Spencer gave him that. “Is Spencer my new mom?”

“Why do you think that?” David gripped the steering wheel a little harder as he spoke and looked at Jack. 

“They share a bed and well Daddy smiled at Mommy like that.” David cursed the way that kids seemed to just know things and see things better than adults. “They also make Daddy breakfast and Daddy makes them breakfast. But Daddy doesn’t do that for you.” 

“Well your Daddy does like Spencer a lot and Spencer likes him.” David did not want to be the one to explain to Jack that his father was with someone. “Have you asked your Daddy about Spencer?”

“No. I don’t want to scare them away.” Jack looked at his hands again and David cursed softly again. “Uncle David, Spencer isn’t a boy or a girl so what do I call them? They can’t be daddy or mommy, that would be silly.” 

“Has anyone told you that you are too smart?” David didn’t answer the question and looked away from Jack as he spoke. 

“Spencer tells me that being smart is good. That being smart makes you happy.” David sighed at that, Spencer would tell him that, especially after how they were treated for their brains.

“Yeah being smart is good. I think you should talk to Daddy when you go home, maybe you can find out who Spencer is going to be.” Jack seemed to accept that answer and went back to humming a song as they drove. 

As they pulled up at the lake, Jack already running around the park, David pulled out his phone and called Aaron. 

“Is Jack okay?” David laughed a little at that and turned his attention to the boy laughing and playing on the swings. 

“He is fine, but he said a few interesting things to me on the drive.” Aaron was quiet so he continued speaking. “He asked if Spencer was his mommy, then said that was silly because they aren’t a boy or girl.” 

“Really?” Aaron sounded more alert and David hummed. “What did you say?” 

“I said he needed to talk to you and Spencer about it, I was just phoning as a warning.” David watched as Jack ran after a bird, trying to catch it in his hands. 

“Fuck, okay thank you, I didn’t think we were obvious, I mean it’s been two months.” Aaron went quiet and David was about to say something before he spoke again. “We will deal with it later, now go and fish with my child.” 

“On it boss, say hi to Spencer for me.” He hung up the phone and turned around to face Jack with a smile. “Are you ready to go fishing?” 

“Yes. Yes. Yes.” David laughed at him, running in circles as he repeated the word over and over. The two of them headed to the pier to set up. 

It was a few hours later when David was dropping Jack off at his house when the kid asked him again. “Is Spencer here?” 

“I would assume so.” He knocked on the door and watched as the handle turned before Aaron was there, smiling. 

“Hiya Buddy, Dave.” David tilted his head in greeting and watched as Jack ran passed his dad to go and find Spencer. “Did he say anything after?” 

“Not really. He mentioned liking Spencer and wondering if they were living with you now. I deflected mostly.” Aaron nodded, running a hand through his hair before moving aside. 

“Do you want to come in? We have enough food and it has been forever since you joined us.” David nodded, he could spare an extra few hours for his best friend and his family. “Great. Come on then.”

David stepped in the house, shrugging his coat off and placing it in the closet that he knew housed them, then he followed Aaron into the kitchen to see Spencer and Jack at the cooker talking.

“David is staying for dinner.” Spencer just nodded at that before their attention went back to Jack. “Drinks?”

“I’m driving, so nothing alcoholic please.” Aaron just nodded, grabbing a lemonade and pouring two glasses, handing one to Spencer before giving the other to David. Jack moved back to the sofa to sit beside his dad and Aaron held him close before he spoke.

“So how was fishing?” Jack launched on a ramble about the different fish they had caught, and the birds they had seen and the playpark, all while the three adults listened to him with small smiles. 

As Jack was finishing up the cooker beeped to signal it was done and Spencer stood to take care of it as Aaron moved to get the table ready. Jack had moved to sit beside David and moved to whisper in his ear. 

“We should ask them.” David was a little confused at first, his mind running before he remembered the conversation and what he had said, he was about to have enough entertainment to last a lifetime if Jack asked them at the table. 

“Are you sure?” Jack just nodded, giving him a mini Hotchner glare that told him he was not going to back down. “Okay Kid.”

“Jack dinner is ready, go and wash your hands please.” Jack rushed away at the words and Rossi took the time to warn his two friends of the pleasant dinner they were about to have. 

“He is going to ask you both when we are eating.” Spencer looked confused before their mind caught up to them and they had a small shocked look on their face. 

“Well we have prepared as much as we can, I didn’t think he would remember to be honest.” Aaron just pulled his partner close and Rossi sat down as he heard Jack come back through. Spencer placed the dinner on the table and everyone started to eat, but it wasn’t long before Jack put his cutlery down and everyone looked up at him.

“Uncle David and I have a question.” David held in a small laugh at being involved but nodded when Jack looked over at him. 

“What is the question?” Aaron leaned forward slightly and Jack looked between him and Spencer for a second. 

“What do I call Spencer? I can’t call you Daddy or Mommy.” Spencer let out a small noise of shock at the honesty from Jack but Aaron seemed prepared enough for it. 

“What do you want to call Spencer?” Jack shrugged and Aaron looked at him again. “Spencer and I are together, like when Mommy and Daddy were together.” 

“I know that.” The three of them all blinked a little at that but it didn’t throw Aaron off at all. 

“Well it doesn’t change anything. Spencer is still Spencer.” Jack nodded and picked up his cutlery like he hadn’t just been told something pretty big. David looked back up at Spencer and Aaron, both who seemed a little confused but accepted Jack’s reaction and went back to eating as well. 

It was later, close to the end of dinner that Aaron mentioned it again. “You cannot tell anyone Buddy, it is a super special secret that only we know.”

“Like a Spy?” Aaron nodded and Jack grinned. “I’m a spy!”

“You sure are Buddy. Now finish up and we can talk about dessert.” Jack nodded, already attempting to finish his food faster now that he knew he would be getting a treat after. 

David watched as the small family interacted, it was nice to see Aaron happy again and especially with someone who loved him as much as Spencer does, not that they had told each other yet, but that would be a problem for Future David Rossi to deal with.


End file.
